Hamilton refuses to pay hackers 'huge' ransom in wake of cyberattack
The City of Hamilton has refused to pay a ransom to hackers who launched a cyberattack against the city nearly three weeks ago.
The ransomware attack took place on Feb. 25 and has plagued city services, including but not limited to, telephone lines, transit schedules, tax services, and Ontario Works and Special Supports.
"The demand was a whole hell of a lot of money," Hamilton Mayor Andrea Horwath said in a news conference on Friday. The mayor could not say how much the hackers wanted, but added, "It was a huge ask."
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
At this point in time, Horwath said the city does not believe that anyone’s personal information has been compromised.
City Manager Marnie Cluckie added that the city can’t access the data, since it’s encrypted, but that they have a backup in place.
“All evidence at this point and based on what our cyber experts are telling us is that while it's encrypted it hasn't been removed from the organization, it hasn't been taken and therefore it hasn’t been compromised,” Cluckie said.
When it comes to getting services back online, she said fire and paramedic services, along with anything safety-related, are priorities. Meanwhile, the city is still working to contain the breach and rebuild its IT system.
“It’s not over yet,” Horwath said, noting the long path to restoration still ahead. “Those bad guys are still out there.”
"They (hackers) are miles ahead of most organizations because this is what they do day in and day out.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
From essential goods to common stocking stuffers, Trudeau offering Canadians temporary tax relief
Canadians will soon receive a temporary tax break on several items, along with a one-time $250 rebate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Thursday.
She thought her children just had a cough or fever. A mother shares sons' experience with walking pneumonia
A mother shares with CTVNews.ca her family's health scare as medical experts say cases of the disease and other respiratory illnesses have surged, filling up emergency departments nationwide.
Trump chooses Pam Bondi for attorney general pick after Gaetz withdraws
U.S. president-elect Donald Trump on Thursday named Pam Bondi, the former attorney general of Florida, to be U.S. attorney general just hours after his other choice, Matt Gaetz, withdrew his name from consideration.
A one-of-a-kind Royal Canadian Mint coin sells for more than $1.5M
A rare one-of-a-kind pure gold coin from the Royal Canadian Mint has sold for more than $1.5 million. The 99.99 per cent pure gold coin, named 'The Dance Screen (The Scream Too),' weighs a whopping 10 kilograms and surpassed the previous record for a coin offered at an auction in Canada.
Putin says Russia attacked Ukraine with a new missile that he claims the West can't stop
Russian President Vladimir Putin announced Thursday that Moscow has tested a new intermediate-range missile in a strike on Ukraine, and he warned that it could use the weapon against countries that have allowed Kyiv to use their missiles to strike Russia.
Here's a list of items that will be GST/HST-free over the holidays
Canadians won't have to pay GST on a selection of items this holiday season, the prime minister vowed on Thursday.
Video shows octopus 'hanging on for dear life' during bomb cyclone off B.C. coast
Humans weren’t the only ones who struggled through the bomb cyclone that formed off the B.C. coast this week, bringing intense winds and choppy seas.
Taylor Swift's motorcade spotted along Toronto's Gardiner Expressway
Taylor Swift is officially back in Toronto for round two. The popstar princess's motorcade was seen driving along the Gardiner Expressway on Thursday afternoon, making its way to the downtown core ahead of night four of ‘The Eras Tour’ at the Rogers Centre.
Service Canada holding back 85K passports amid Canada Post mail strike
Approximately 85,000 new passports are being held back by Service Canada, which stopped mailing them out a week before the nationwide Canada Post strike.